''Dream Stuffing'' is a British television
sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...
which aired on
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
in early 1984.
The series followed the exploits of two working class young women, Mo (Amanda Symonds) and Jude (Rachel Weaver), who share a flat in a council tower block in
London's East End, along with their three-legged cat, Tripod. Mo has a menial job in a
glass eye
An ocular prosthesis, artificial eye or glass eye is a type of craniofacial prosthesis that replaces an absent natural eye following an enucleation, evisceration, or orbital exenteration. The prosthesis fits over an orbital implant and under ...
factory, whilst Jude is on the
dole
Dole may refer to:
Places
* Dole, Ceredigion, Wales
* Dole, Idrija, Slovenia
* Dole, Jura, France
** Arrondissement of Dole
* Dole (Kladanj), a village at the entity line of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina-Republika Srpska
* Dole, Ljubušk ...
.
Part way through the series, Mo loses her job and the two girls become a thorn in the side for employment review officer Mrs Tudge (Helen Brammer). Other characters include their gay neighbour Richard, (played by Ray Burdis), Mo's interfering mother May (Maria Charles), who runs the local launderette, Brenda (Caroline Quentin), who works with Mo at the glass eye factory, Bill (Frank Lee) and Mr Sharples (Allister Bain).
The series' theme tune, "London Girls", was written and performed by
Kirsty MacColl
Kirsty Anna MacColl (10 October 1959 – 18 December 2000) was a British singer and songwriter, daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl. She recorded several pop hits in the 1980s and 1990s, including " There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears ...
.
The series was repeated once by Channel 4 in Summer 1985. It has so far not been released on video or DVD.
Critical reaction
Martin Walker in the Guardian attacked it as "heroically bad", finding it a painful attempt to construct an "up-to-date and relevant sitcom" that turned out close to a parody of Channel 4's right-on output of the time.
["Slice of life", Walker, Martin, The Guardian (1959-2003); 7 Jan 1984; pg. 9]
References
External links
*
*
Dream Stuffing - Series One Episode One
Channel 4 sitcoms
Television shows set in London
1980s British sitcoms
1984 British television series debuts
1984 British television series endings
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